Erik ten Hag does not appear to have let a rejection to have got the better of him having been spotted with a former Manchester United target - Robin van Persie.
The ex-Red Devils striker retired in 2019 at the age of 35 having returned to boyhood club Feyenoord. He has been working on his coaching badges since and had the chance to seal an emotional return to Old Trafford in the summer.
Van Persie originally left Man Utd in 2015 following a prolific three-year spell in which he scored 58 goals and won the first Premier League title of his career. Having been appointed as Ralf Rangnick’s permanent successor, Ten Hag wanted the ex-forward on his coaching team only for Van Persie to reject the prospect of heading back to Manchester.
That does not appear to have soured relationships between the pair, with them having been spotted in Manchester together. They had lunch at Tattu restaurant before walking back to The Lowry Hotel where Ten Hag had parked his car.
The pair were only meeting as friends with Van Persie having previously been clear on his reasons for turning down a reunion with the Red Devils. Talking on the Life After Football Podcast, he said: “My son and daughter are important right now.
“The fact that they have both found their passion is great. A hobby is nice, but you hope that they really find a passion.
What would be a success for Erik ten Hag in his first season at Man Utd? Share your thoughts in the comments below
“Dina succeeded in doing that with horse riding, she's totally into it, and Shaqueel has the same thing with soccer. My wife, Bouchra, is developing all her talents with our projects and that's great to see. We're enjoying ourselves together.''
“In London, when I played at Arsenal, we moved five times,” said van Persie. “We also lived in Manchester and Istanbul. All in all, we were away for almost fourteen years. But then we thought 'what's good for the kids now?' and felt a little stability would be nice.”
In the end, Ten Hag turned to Steven McClaren and Mitchell van der Gaag to make up his backroom team, the former returning to Old Trafford having served a stint under legendary manager Sir Alex Ferguson. In the meantime, Van Persie remained with Feyenoord to act as Dick Advocaat’s assistant.
His expertise certainly appears to have helped the Dutch outfit with them sitting three points clear at the top of the Eredivisie before the enforced break for the World Cup. Ten Hag’s former club Ajax are in second having lifted the title in the Dutchman’s final season before his departure for Man Utd.
Ten Hag and his backroom team currently have Man Utd sitting in fifth in the Premier League ahead of their return to action against newly-promoted Nottingham Forest after Christmas.
